Jamal Murray, executioner of the hapless Mavericks

THE Mavericks lost at home Nuggetsin a match marked by injuries to Cooper Flagg and Daniel Gafford. This is Denver’s 5th win in six matches, despite being without Nikola Jokic.

Deprived of their star pivots, the two teams began the match at a high tempo, aggressively swinging the racket. With Cooper Flagg near the circle and Klay Thompson hitting from long range, Dallas took the lead early in the game, but Denver turned the momentum midway through the first quarter thanks to Aaron Gordon. Najib Marshall makes all the right shots, but Jamal Murray answers him and the Nuggets lead 29-23.

The second quarter is very much in favor of the Nuggets. Denver continues to hit the winning shots as it continues to hurt near the circle, extending the deficit to +18 (51-33). Naji Marshall tries to keep the Mavericks in the game with his penetration and floaters, but Dallas’ offense remains too limited. Six minutes before halftime, the match changed slightly when Cooper Flagg injured his left ankle in defense. Novak briefly returns to the floor to end the half, but Dallas returns to the locker room with a big deficit: 63-46.

Return attempt failed

At the restart, an announcement arrives: Flagg will not be back for the second half. Minutes later, Daniel Gafford also sprained his ankle, before quickly returning to the game. Denver took advantage of these difficulties to build a lead of over 20 points, giving the impression that the game was already over. However, the Mavericks responded with pride and closed out the third quarter with an impressive 17-4 run to get back within 88-78 before the final twelve minutes.

Buoyed by this momentum, Dallas continued its recovery in the fourth quarter and got back to -5 after Ryan Nembhardt’s 3-pointer. This threat immediately wakes up Denver: former homer Tim Hardaway Jr. starts a run (13-2), punctuated by Jamal Murray’s game-winning shot. In another comeback attempt, the Mavericks still managed to cut the deficit to -6 with one minute remaining. But Murray then calms the room with a mid-range shot, before Aaron Gordon makes the free throws to seal the win.

WHAT TO REMEMBER

Dallas unhappy and clumsy. The Mavericks are paying a heavy price for a disastrous outside shooting going abysmal 5 of 34 on 3-pointers, or less than 15%. To make matters worse, they lost Cooper Flagg and Daniel Gafford. The two join Anthony Davis, Derek Lively II and of course Kyrie Irving in the clinic.

Quick game. Not only did the Mavericks dominate the floor, but their missed shots allowed the Nuggets to punish them severely on the counterattack. Denver finished the game with 30 points on offense, compared to just 10 points in transition for Dallas. The Nuggets didn’t even have to force their game: Mavericks turnovers did all the work, prompting threes in transition, quick layups and runs that ended the home team’s momentum.

Zero. He wasn’t hurt, but D’Angelo Russell didn’t even play… It shows that the divorce with Jason Kidd is over, and it’s all the more scary that the former Lakers leader is the Mavericks’ main recruiter in the offseason. Another Nick Harrison move…

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How to read statistics? Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive jump; T = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = point difference when the player is on the court; Points = Points; Rating: player rating calculated based on positive actions – negative actions.